PolyTherics and MacroGenics Extend ADC Collaboration

Apr 11, 2014

By Pharmaceutical Technology Editors

PolyTherics, a technology solutions provider for biopharmaceutical development, has extended its antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) collaboration with US biotech company, MacroGenics. The extension follows the successful outcome of a research program undertaken in 2013 under a Research Collaboration and Option Agreement.

PolyTherics has developed ThioBridge for site-specific conjugation of cytotoxic payloads to antibodies to provide more stable and less heterogeneous ADCs. MacroGenics has two antibody technology platforms—a dual-affinity re-targeting (DART) bi-specific platform, in which a single recombinant molecule is able to target two different antigens, and Fc-optimized antibodies with improved effector function.

ThioBridge was used to conjugate a cytotoxic payload to a range of DART antibodies. MacroGenics and PolyTherics will collaborate in the application of its ThioBridge technology to a number of product candidates derived from MacroGenics’ antibody platforms.

MacroGenics has an option to licence the ThioBridge technology for the development of these product candidates and PolyTherics would receive development milestones and a single-digit percentage royalty on sales of any ThioBridge ADC derived from this collaboration.